Volleyball Wildcats in NCAA Sweet Sixteen

UK coach Craig Skinner and his players speak during the postgame press conference after defeating Baylor in the NCAA Tournament Friday night at Rupp Arena. Skinner will be making his ninth NCAA Sweet Sixteen appearance next week as the Kentucky boss.

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Senior Reagan Rutherford had 14 kills and freshman Brooklyn DeLeye added 13 kills and 10 digs as Kentucky defeated Baylor 25-18, 25-22, 25-17 on Friday night in the second round of the NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament at Rupp Arena.

Kentucky (21-7) hit a red-hot .500 as a team in the match compared to just .258 for Baylor. Junior Emma Grome contributed 45 assists to Kentucky’s offense while junior Eleanor Beavin led the Wildcats defense with 13 digs, part of the team’s 36 total digs.

The Wildcats came out on fire, winning the opening set 25-18 and hitting an impressive .583. In the first set, UK had 16 kills and only two errors on 24 total swing attempts. In the second set, the Wildcats hit .467 with 19 kills alongside 11 digs defeating the Bears 25-22. Kentucky dominated in the third set with 16 kills clutching the sweep, 25-17.

Baylor (17-12) had 34 kills in the match, led by Elise McGhee with 15 and Allie Sczech with eight. Setter Averi Carlson helping lead the Bears offense adding 28 assists.

Kentucky advances to the regional next week at a location that has yet to be determined.